A moving, almost-suffocating, haunting exploration of what defines manhood.
Recently suspended twice for school fights, 17-year-old Abraham grapples with a propensity for violence.
The Latino teen’s grandmother can’t seem to bear his fighting anymore and decides that “Abram needs to learn how to be a man.” She enlists the help of Claudio, Abraham’s boorish, hostile uncle. With Uncle Claudio’s impending return, Abram fears the worst. Although his mother’s absence and his father’s death—a topic not broached in his family—also gnaw at him, he finds solace in his relationship with almost-girlfriend Ophelia, who urges him to root out the source of his aggression. “If you keep fighting….Nothing good can come from this, Abraham.” In his debut for teens, Jiménez (The Possibilities of Mud, 2014) explores shades of manhood and all it entails with a deft, poetic hand. Utilizing a second-person narration, the author revels in offering intense sensory details, portraying a firm sense of Abram’s inner turmoil. Uncle Claudio’s arrival marks the beginning of an ill-fated path for his nephew. After taking him to the gym to hone his strength, Uncle Claudio wants to prepare Abram for a career in boxing. Falling deeper for Ophelia, Abram considers his uncle’s offer as he muses on the “prospect of bills and a job and a family to lead.” When Uncle Claudio signs him up for dubious fighting matches, it all comes crashing down on Abram. Revelations come in disorienting wallops.
A moving, almost-suffocating, haunting exploration of what defines manhood. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: May 31, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-55885-828-2
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Piñata Books/Arte Público
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
PROFILES
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away.
A Mexican American boy takes on heavy responsibilities when his family is torn apart.
Mateo’s life is turned upside down the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents show up unsuccessfully seeking his Pa at his New York City bodega. The Garcias live in fear until the day both parents are picked up; his Pa is taken to jail and his Ma to a detention center. The adults around Mateo offer support to him and his 7-year-old sister, Sophie, however, he knows he is now responsible for caring for her and the bodega as well as trying to survive junior year—that is, if he wants to fulfill his dream to enter the drama program at the Tisch School of the Arts and become an actor. Mateo’s relationships with his friends Kimmie and Adam (a potential love interest) also suffer repercussions as he keeps his situation a secret. Kimmie is half Korean (her other half is unspecified) and Adam is Italian American; Mateo feels disconnected from them, less American, and with worries they can’t understand. He talks himself out of choosing a safer course of action, a decision that deepens the story. Mateo’s self-awareness and inner monologue at times make him seem older than 16, and, with significant turmoil in the main plot, some side elements feel underdeveloped. Aleman’s narrative joins the ranks of heart-wrenching stories of migrant families who have been separated.
An ode to the children of migrants who have been taken away. (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5605-8
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
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